Someone in the Washington Capitals sales department made a pretty big oopsie on Thursday.
The team mistakenly sent out an email to season ticket holders suggesting that next season would be Alex Ovechkin’s last. Ovechkin, 39, recently broke the NHL’s all-time goal scoring record, passing Wayne Gretzky late in the regular season. On Thursday afternoon, the Capitals public relations department issued a statement on social media, calling the email a mistake.
“No decision has been made on Alex Ovechkin’s future following the 2025-26 NHL season,” the statement read. “An email was sent from an individual with the corporate sales department that mistakenly alluded to next year being Alex Ovechkin’s final year.”
Given Ovechkin’s age, the fact that he now has the all-time goals record, and previous speculation that he may want to finish his career in the Russian KHL, it would make sense if next year was his final season with the Washington Capitals. Of course, that’s not the type of news that should be broken by a sales team trying to drum up more interest for season tickets.
Ovechkin has already stated he intends to play next season, his 21st in the NHL. But the superstar has not made any public pronouncements regarding his future beyond 2026.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.